Re: Ask me a cooking question

I think it depends on the dish. Some dishes rely on browning more than others for the flavour. For instance, I would brown meatballs if I'm going to serve them in gravy, because that browned-meat flavour is really what gravy is about, but I wouldn't bother if I'm going to serve them in tomato sauce as the sauce has plenty of flavour and umami on its own.

So I reckon you would get away without browning for a chilli - I'm sure it adds depth of flavour but with so much else going on you might not notice if that note was missing - but for plain Scottish mince, you absolutely have to brown it, as that's where most of the flavour is coming from (there's nothing else bar onions, carrots and seasoning).

Re: Ask me a cooking question

Re: Ask me a cooking question

hi Jamie,your the greatest cheif iv ever seen im my life you inspire me in food i was about to study cooking in royal academy of culinary arts but my dad wont let me until i finish univirsity but i will alway love cooking and trying to invent new recipes i saw you when u were travelling in diffrent countires and trying to see the secrets in their food now im inviting you to come to jordan and see our food

Re: Ask me a cooking question

Re: Ask me a cooking question

Hi Jamie,

I´m a Portuguese mother of a beautiful family. I love to cook although my time is short. Recently I have followed your programs "jamie's 30-minute meals" and love to see "Jamie Does... ". But became a little sad when you were so near by (In Spain) and never came to Portugal. We have delicious plates. The dish that we eat during the year and is our traditional dish for Christmas is made with stockfish. We have more than an hundred ways of cooking it, and many more Portuguese recipes that are delicious. We have a saying "We live to eat and not eat to live". Would love to see you in Portugal !!!

Re: Ask me a cooking question

I have just joined so hi to everyone! I am a novice cook but very eager to learn as much as I can as I LOVE food and cooking

Can I please ask for help with a christmas cake. I am going to make Jamie's traditional cake recipe, which I'm sure will be gorgeous, but I would like to attempt a meringue topping (snow effect-hopefully!!). My question is, if I cook the cake now and feed it for a couple of weeks, can I put it back in the oven to cook the meringue topping??

I'm being a little bit cheeky and using Lorraine Pascale's topping she used on her christmas wonderland traybake, which calls for 20-25mins in the oven!

Thanks in advance for any help/advice you're able to offer me.

Look forward to reading some interesting and helpful blogs you've all posted to date.

Re: Ask me a cooking question

Welcome to the forum CostalKid

I am not sure that that sort of topping would work on a rich fruit cake.

When you make a Rich Fruit cake like a Christmas Cake you layer of marzipan on the cake before you ise it and this helps serve a few purposes , it helps prevent any staining onto the icing from the cake It gives a flat surface for the icing .The icing on the cake also keeps well and heps to preserve the cake in good condition.

There are several different types of icing that you can put onto the cake , but the sort you see whipped up looking like snow is simple to make.I havnt got the recipe to hand at the moment but its generally to be forund on the outside of the icing packets ( as far as I can remember).

I can also remember as a child my brothers favorite icing was some sort of american frosting that we had to boil sugar for and then beat up I really have no idea of the recipe as it was way back in the late 60's and we'd found the recipe once in a magazine I think . But that ising when we managed t get it to work ( as children without such eqiptment as a sugar thermemeter and with a degree of impatiience ) when we did manage to get it to work the result was a crisp light dried sugary icing not unlike meringue.

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